Last week, Epic Games announced that Apple is going to prevent the company from using the “Sign-in with Apple” API. This means that Fortnite mobile players who signed up with the game using Apple’s universal sign-in option wouldn’t be able to log in their accounts anymore. Epic Games later posted FAQs about account migration for its players to follow.
However, in a tweet earlier today, Epic games said Apple gave them an indefinite extension in using the sign-in option. The announcement that Apple was going to terminate the “Sign-in with Apple” support for all Epic Games titles rapidly led to massive backlash from the Apple community. It was regarded as a useless retaliatory move that will cause incomparable inconvenience to Apple users.
UPDATE: Apple previously stated they would terminate “Sign In with Apple” support for Epic Games accounts after Sept 11, 2020, but today provided an indefinite extension. We still recommend you prepare your accounts now for “Sign In with Apple” removal. https://t.co/hUDCKcajGo
— Epic Games Store (@EpicGames) September 10, 2020
Additionally, a lot of apps and game developers depend on Apple’s sign-in services with complete trust. This trust was put in question with Apple’s recent warning that they are going to bring down the ban hammer.
Epic Games and Apple’s legal battle about Epic’s decision to bypass App Store regulations and secretly install a direct purchase option to Fortnite looks like it’s going to be a long one. Epic is charging Apple for applying monopolistic powers on the App Store while Apple indicting Epic Games for breach of contract. Both companies are set to appear in court on September 28 and are preparing for a full trial which might years to settle.
Apple will no longer allow users to sign into Fortnite using “Sign In with Apple” as soon as September 11, 2020. If you used “Sign In with Apple”, please make sure your email and password are up to date. https://t.co/T0Rq0tfrR7
— Fortnite Status (@FortniteStatus) September 9, 2020
As of writing, Fortnite can’t be downloaded by new players on iPad or iPhone since Apple removed the title from its App Store. However, the game is still playable for old players who have downloaded it before all these confusions happened.
